


Untitled 03

by orphan_account



Category: Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Crossdressing, Friends to Lovers, Genderfluid!Tyler, Heteronormativity, Internalized Transphobia, Kid Fic, M/M, Step-Brothers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-04
Updated: 2018-02-04
Packaged: 2019-03-13 09:27:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13567656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: "I don't hate you. I couldn't."





	Untitled 03

Josh was six when Tyler joined the Dun household.

“Mommy, why do I have to share a room with him?” Josh whispered into his mother’s ear as he watched the frail boy play with Lincoln Logs on the living room floor. “He’s _strange_ ,” Josh continued, his eyes glued to the younger boy.

“Because he’s family, now,” his mother told him. “Please be respectful of him.”

 

 

“What happened to your parents?” Josh asked the five year old boy that night as they laid in their bunk bed. Tyler was given the bunk on top even though Josh was older, but Josh didn’t mind. He had always wanted a lofted bed but his real brother, Jordan was too little to share one with him.

“They didn't want me anymore.”

“What? Why?”

Josh remained quiet, expecting the strange boy to elaborate. Instead, he began to cry and Josh winced.

“Are you crying?”

“N-no,” he sniffled. “Only _girls_ cry.”

Josh crawled out of his bed and climbed up the ladder to Tyler’s bunk.

“I’m sorry I made you cry.”

Tyler’s sobbing subsided as he peered over at Josh who offered him a warm smile; Tyler began to wail again. The older boy pulled himself up to Tyler’s side and wrapped his arms around him. He could feel the younger boy stiffen but he didn’t try to pull away to Josh’s delight. They fell asleep in each other’s arms with Josh running his hands through Tyler’s fluffy hair. There was nothing strange about it.

* * *

Josh was eleven when he got in trouble for fighting.

Some kid called Tyler weird for lining his Pokemon cards up in alphabetical order, and Josh hurled a soccer ball at his stomach. In turn, he got a call home and a stern talking to from the principal.

His mother was appalled, but after Tyler stood by his best friend’s side and tried to reason with the tired nurse, Josh was off the hook from any real punishment.

“Just… use your words from now on, _please_ , Josh,” she sighed, stroking her fingers through her son’s curly locks.

Ten year old Tyler smiled at the sight, before Laura began to stroke his hair as well. His stomach felt warm.

“I love _both_ of my boys,” she proclaimed. “But that doesn't change the face that the Nintendo is off-limits for the rest of the week.”

They groaned, simultaneously, knowing there wasn’t a way out of that one.

* * *

It wasn’t until Josh was fourteen that he caught his best friend trying on his little sister’s skirts.

“ _Ty_?” Josh asked, unsure of what he was seeing.

A bright blush appeared on the canvases of Tyler’s face as he let out a small ‘yelp’.

“J-Josh! W- _why_ aren’t y-you at soccer practice?” The thirteen year old was completely mortified being caught in girls clothing. 

“What are you _doing_ , dude?”

The boys were in Ashley, Josh’s 12 year old sister’s, room. Her dresser was torn apart, and her clothes were strewn across the room.

“I, uh, erm…” Tyler stammered, unable to meet Josh’s gaze. “It’s… I’m _weird_ , aren’t I…?”

“You’re not,” Josh offered, watching as Tyler shuffled uncomfortably in the skirt. “You look, uh, _good_ ,” he whispered, not so sure of what else to say.

And all it took was one measly comment to have Tyler beaming.

“You really think so?”

Josh scoffed.

“I know so. Um, why don't you try on _this_ one?”

They spent the whole afternoon playing dress up. Tyler felt good for the first time in a long time.

“You won’t tell anyone, yeah?” Tyler asked as he found out he liked the pink one with ruffles best.

“Not if you don't want me to,” Josh replied, staring at Tyler’s thighs. They looked so soft with the pink fabric overtop them.

“Good. I don’t want them to think I’m weird.”

Josh didn’t either.

“Are you a chick?” Josh demanded. Tyler tensed before shifting nervously in the the skirt.

“I— of course not—”

“Because it’s not weird if you are.”

“I’m a boy,” Tyler insisted, though he didn't sound too convincing. “I like to look nice.”

Josh chewed on that.

* * *

Josh was depressed. Sixteen was a tough year.

Tyler was having a blast. He was captain of the basketball team and he had a girlfriend. Albeit an extremely hot girlfriend that Josh may have wanted to make out with.

“Hi, Josh,” Jenna smiled showing off her sharp teeth as Josh bolted down the stairs of the Dun family home. Tyler and his girlfriend, Jenna Black, were sitting on the couch in the family room, cuddling

“Hey, Jen. How’s it going?”

He knew it was pointless to ask because she had turned her attention back to Tyler as soon as she could, pressing her lips to his temple as her boyfriend chuckled into her pretty blonde hair.

Josh rolled his eyes and made his way to the kitchen. Opening up the fridge, he grabbed a carton of milk and began to chug, furiously.

“That's _disgusting_ ,” his sister, Ashley, muttered as she came up from behind him.

“You don't even _like_ milk,” he retorted, “so what’s the frickin’ problem?”

“You're so _angry_ , lately,” she commented, running her fingers through her tawny orange hair. “It's not like you.”

“What would you know?” he snapped, defensively.

Ashley rolled her eyes.

“Mom and Dad wanted me to remind you to go grocery shopping for the weekend,” the redhead told him. 

Laura and Bill were headed up to Cleveland for the weekend for his dad’s work and Josh was in charge.

He hummed in acknowledgement before doing some more milk and grabbing his keys from the kitchen table.

“Josh-o-roo!” Tyler called.

Josh felt all the tension leave his body as he followed the voice that beckoned him.

“Yeah?” he croaked his eyes landing upon Jenna snuggled into Tyler’s chest.

“Can you give me a ride on Saturday?”

 

 

Somehow, Tyler ended up convincing Josh to drive him and Jenna to a party that weekend seeing as the fifteen year old didn't have a license.

“You should hang around for a bit, dude,” Tyler suggested as Josh pulled the CR-V up to the curb of Nick Thomas’ colossal house in Medallion, the ritzy part of suburban Ohio.

“Yeah, Josh! It’d be fun!” Jenna exclaimed.

Josh sighed. He didn't have a good reason to say no.

 

The punk had lost Tyler and his girlfriend in an instance, Tyler being, well, more popular than Josh, but it was okay because a really pretty senior named Debby who was in Josh’s calculus class ended up cornering him and shoving her tongue down his throat. She wasn't too bad at it either. 

“It's time for some seven minutes in heaven!” Nick Thomas, the guy who was hosting the party shouted, allowing the room to applaud.

“Wanna play?” Debby inquired, shooting Josh a mischievous look. He squinted at her, his grin showing off his perfectly straight teeth before he nodded and pinched her ass.

She took his large hand in her soft one and led him over to the circle of teens in the living room.

Tyler and Jenna were sat across the way but Josh noticed his best friend’s gaze locked on Debby’s hand which was currently positioned firmly on Josh’s thigh.

‘What?’ Josh mouthed to Tyler. The athlete shrugged and looked away.

As the game went on, Josh watched with resentment as Jenna and Tyler made their way to the closet, giggling. The minutes dragged on as images of Tyler and Jenna plagued his mind and when the pair returned seven minutes later, Josh’s heart raced as his eyes landed upon the dark hickies that covered Tyler’s neck.

The teens all ‘wooped’ and hollered as Debby pulled Josh away and towards the closet. She was a very pretty girl, but she was sloppy and all Josh could play in his head were the words to Death Cab's ‘Tiny Vessels’ and he felt sick. 

“No,” he choked as she shoved her manicured fingers down his pants, grazing the hair that rested on his pubic triangle. “Please stop… _no_ …”

And just as her manicured nails made contact with his penis, there was banging on the closet door. It had barely been three minutes, and tears were pricking Josh’s eyes, the start of a very inconvenient panic attack.

“Open up!” Tyler’s angry voice demanded as he pounded on the door. 

Debby scrambled to turn the knob, and pushed her way out past Josh’s best friend.

Josh sobbed into his arm as Tyler fell to his knees to embrace the older boy.

“You’re okay now… It’s alright, J… I’m so sorry.”

 

 

Tyler opened up the passenger side door for Josh which the latter didn’t question. So a fifteen and a half year old with a learner’s permit was going to drive them home? It was better than someone with a license who had been drinking, a.k.a all of Tyler’s friends at the party.

They drove in silence the whole way, Josh staring stupidly out the window.

* * *

It was when Tyler turned seventeen that he realized he was in love with Josh. It had happened when he was studying one afternoon for a very important final in IB Spanish. Josh had been banging those drums for over an hour, and while Tyler could appreciate how talented he was, now was not the time for an endless drum solo.

“Josh!” Tyler screeched as he stormed into the Dun family’s garage.

The drumming continued on, Josh obviously oblivious to Tyler’s frustration, but Tyler was  now enchanted with the sight before him. 

Josh was beating his drum kit with such a force, and the boy was shirtless. Freckles covered his back and arms as he beat the living daylights out of his drums. His biceps were so built up; Tyler was positive Josh could throw him around like a doll.

Not that he wanted to be tossed around or anything.

Tyler was too busy staring that he didn’t even notice the drumming stop.

“You need something?” Josh asked, wiping his brow of any sweat.

Tyler felt parched.

“I’m trying to study,” he rasped, meekly. 

“Dude, go to the _library_ or something.”

And Tyler couldn’t keep his eyes from locking on the pink undertones in Josh’s pectoral region. He wanted to line them with kisses.

“I don’t wanna,” Tyler probed. 

“Well, that’s too damn bad,” Josh shrugged. Tyler snorted.

“You’re so _grumpy_ ,” the younger teen pouted. “You use to be so nice to me.”

Josh ignored him.

“You use to beat kids up if they looked at me the wrong way,” Tyler continued, wandering mindlessly around the garage.

“Yeah, well, things change,” Josh snapped as Tyler stepped closer to him.

“What happened to the Joshie I knew?” the younger boy mumbled as he ran hand through Josh’s dark brown locks.

“What about the Tyler I knew?” Josh spat back. “The one that was sensitive and sweet? The one that allowed the stranger parts of him to exist even though he was scared?”

Tyler flinched, knowing what Josh was getting at.

Neither of them had spoken about the skirt incident since that day.

“Don’t bring that up,” Tyler mumbled.

“Why? It’s who you are. You’re so damn ashamed to be yourself and maybe that’s why I’m angry!” the drummer shouted, standing up from his kit.

“The whole school _likes_ you, Ty, but they don’t even _know_ you—”

“Maybe I was sick of the ridicule, _Josh_! Maybe I wanted to be accepted, and maybe I was sick of being rescued by _you_!”

“ _Bullshit_!”

“Bullshit? _Bullshit_?” Tyler screeched. “I’ll tell you what’s bullshit: you let yourself get so angry and you stomp around like everyone wronged you but maybe you should just grow up—”

“Your girlfriend doesn’t even know you on a superficial level and your friends are _dicks_.”

“You smoke too much pot and your hair is stupid.”

“At least I don’t pretend to be someone I’m not!

“Bull. You and your punk wannabe friends do the _same_ shit everyone else does—”

“I hate you,” Josh whispered. 

Silence fell over the both of them as the tension grew heavier. Josh regretted the words the second they rolled off of his tongue.

 

“I don’t hate you,” Tyler replied. “I couldn’t.” 

Josh furrowed his eyebrows and as if on auto pilot wrapped his arms around Tyler. It felt like home.

“M’sorry,” Josh muttered, huskily, into Josh’s ear.

There was thick tension surrounding them as the older boy swore he felt a pair of lips press against his neck.

“Tyler… what?”

The younger pulled back, an small smile painting his lips.


End file.
